Photographs are an important piece of memorabilia in the lives of many people. Photographic prints relating to childhood, weddings, vacations and other occasions are commonly placed in photo albums, whereby each photo album may be dedicated to a specific occasion.
A conventional photo album holds a plurality of conventional photographic prints, i.e., those recorded on photographic paper. However, as the number of photographic prints in an album becomes substantial, the size of the photo album may become bulky and storage may become a problem. Moreover, if individual photographic prints are not stored in photo albums, simply locating a desired photo print or group of photos may prove to be a difficult task amid a large collection of prints.
Photo scanners have proven to be a popular means for converting conventional photographic prints into digital images, thereby enabling storage of the images on a hard drive. Advantageously, a person then may discard the conventional photographic print, if desired, thereby eliminating the need to store a large number of individual prints. Moreover, a person can easily locate the digital image, e.g., using identification information associated with the image.
However, the scanning of photographic prints can be a complex process, generally involving coupling the scanner to a computer, selecting desired settings, and then saving the images from the scanner to a hard drive of the computer. If it is desired to display the scanned digital images in a slideshow format, then additional connections, software and/or hardware may be required.
There exists a need for a digital album that is capable of scanning conventional photographic prints, storing the photographic prints as digital images, and displaying the digital images in a slideshow format that preferably is analogous to a display format associated with a conventional photo album. The use of such an all-in-one digital album is expected to reduce the burden experienced by a user in scanning and storing images, as well as creating, editing and viewing a desired photo album.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,888,648 to Takeuchi et al. (Takeuchi) describes an electronic album configured to record, store and display images. In one embodiment, an image reader is configured to convert photographs, pictures or documents into electric signals to obtain corresponding image information that is stored in an image memory and displayed on a display. Index information associated with each image allows a particular image to be retrieved from the memory and displayed on the display. The device also has a keyboard and editor that allows a user to edit stored images.
Additionally, the device described in the Takeuchi patent comprises a disk reader configured to read image information from an image recording medium, e.g., a magnetic disk, and convert the image information into digital signals configured to be displayed on the image display. Furthermore, image information associated with an image may be uploaded to another equipment using an external interface.
The electronic album described in the Takeuchi patent has several drawbacks. First, it is unclear whether flat display 9 may be provided in a closed position during the scanning of a photographic print, i.e., in a position enclosing the print and reducing ambient light during the scanning process. Assuming that the flat display is not provided in such a closed position, then it is expected that a relatively poor scan quality will result since the print is not protected from ambient light. However, assuming that the flat display is closed during the scanning process, then an image may not be viewed on flat display 9 until the display is returned to an upright viewing position. Accordingly, it is expected that either a poor image quality will result, or the user must inconveniently close flat display 9 every time a photo is scanned and then open the display merely to view the image.
Another drawback associated with the device of the Takeuchi patent is the bulky size of the electronic album. It is expected that the device may not be easily transported, and therefore, may not be well-suited for use in certain household applications. Moreover, it would be desirable to use an electronic photo album in conjunction with modern technologies, such as USB ports, firewire ports, and infrared data association (IrDA) ports, thereby facilitating transfer of information between mediums.
In view of these drawbacks of previously known systems, it would be desirable to provide apparatus and methods for a digital album having a hard drive and built-in scanner to allow a user to scan, store and view individual photos, photo album slideshows, or scanned documents without the need for complex or expensive peripheral devices.
It further would be desirable to provide apparatus and methods for a digital album that is configured to scan conventional photographic prints and documents, and then save the prints or documents as digital images, in addition to being configured to download existing digital images from any number of origin mediums.
It also would be desirable to provide apparatus and methods for a digital album that is configured to upload scanned digital images to any number of external destinations or storage destinations.
It also would be desirable to provide apparatus and methods for a digital album having editing capabilities and slideshow functionalities.
It still further would be desirable to provide apparatus and methods for a digital album having several automated features for ease of use.